


Smoke and Mirrors

by bumbleb_tch



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Akumatized Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, Akumatized Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Chat Blanc - Freeform, F/M, Gabriel Agreste is an Asshole, Indefinite time post Miracle Queen, Marinette Dupain-Cheng Is Princess Justice, Minor Graphic Violence, Temporary Character Death, minor mentions of graphic injuries, things are going downhill for a while, time travel is rough guys
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-02
Updated: 2020-05-10
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:33:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 14,385
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23440978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bumbleb_tch/pseuds/bumbleb_tch
Summary: White glinted in the light cast by the door, and Marinette's blue eyes met a colder but equally anxious gaze. Her blood froze in her veins, a strangled whimper escaped her throat unbidden as she was thrust full force into the memory of the last time she'd seen those eyes.Of a broken lonely boy in an empty world and feeling herself dissolve into ash and slip between her own fingers. A fear stronger than any she'd felt facing an akuma clutched her heart in it's grasp, and Marinette realized her cheeks were wet.---Currently on Hiatus
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 89
Kudos: 139





	1. Équilibre

_ In everything, there is balance. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Such is the tides pounding away the sand but wavering to the will of the moon, or the wildfire that burns ravenously through a forest-until it runs out of fuel. Magic is not exempt to this rule. Creation is balanced by destruction, life by death; nothing can be created without something being sacrificed in return. _

_ \----------  _

Gabriel Agreste abruptly ended a video call with his son, his stern countenance crumbling into a rather sad and haggard expression. A heavy sigh exited his body, his strength seeming to go with it from how he sagged into his chair. It brought him no pleasure to hurt his son, but it was necessary to help him in the long run, to give him back his mother. 

He could feel Nathalie’s eyes on him from across the room, “Sir, are you certain you want to do this? The longer this draws out, the worse the long term ramifications to Adrien’s mental health.”

Gabriel’s face and heart hardened immediately, “Of course I’m certain, Nathalie. Adrien is the key to my success against Ladybug and Chat Noir. He may not understand now, but he will once Emilie has been restored. Perhaps then, he will forgive me.” He lapsed into a brief silence, “but I will do what needs to be done to make that happen, and Adrien will be my masterpiece.”

He stood and moved to activate the panels in Emilie’s portrait, his resolve hardened into stone, “Come, Nathalie. It is time for my son to finish my greatest work.”

Nathalie hesitated, conflict evident in her face before she gathered her wits and followed him. He pretended not to notice. Hawkmoth knew that her concern for his son was what was holding her back, and there was nothing he appreciated more than her care for him. 

Once safely underground, Gabriel barked out his transformation phrase, assuming his supervillain mantle. He turned to face her, relieved to see that she had at the very least managed to assume a calm expression. He snatched a pure white butterfly out of the air, cupping it between his fingers.

Quickly akumatizing Nathalie into Catalyst, Hawkmoth plowed onward, his meticulous plan on time to the very second. With Catalyst’s boost to his powers, he began to set his masterpiece in motion. 

He released his first akuma and scanned the area surrounding his son’s school, searching for any young teen suffering from an excess of emotion, as they were so prone.  A cruel smile twisted Gabriel’s face when his akuma connected with an unfortunate soul who was feeling overwhelmed by taking on the stress and emotions of everyone around her in her attempts to support them. 

“Empath, I am Hawkmoth, I am giving you the power to let others feel their emotions as strongly as you do. Let their turmoil tear them apart like they have torn you apart.” He didn’t bother to mention Ladybug and Chat Noir, Empath was not intended to even get that far. “In return, I want you to begin by seeking out Adrien Agreste, I need his help.”

Blocks away, on the steps of Francoise Dupont High School, Empath grinned viciously, “I agree to your terms, Hawkmoth.” 

\----------

Inside the school, Adrien lingered in the locker room for a few minutes longer than he normally might, dallying with the idea in mind that if he got to class late there wouldn’t be any time for his friends to look too closely and ask him if he was okay. He tossed the lucky charm Marinette had made him between his hands, letting the gentle thud of the bracelet soothe him in a repetitive pattern. Hearing footsteps in the hallway he slammed open his locker, intent on making himself look busy. 

The door slammed open, revealing a girl who looked as though she were half made of smoke, shifting rapidly to make her almost formless, except for inky tear stains on her cheeks. Her blind eyes trained on him, eerily vacant without any pupils; when she spoke, her voice echoed in his head rather than in the room itself. 

“Adrien Agreste, I can feel your emotions bubbling just beneath the surface, on the brink of eruption. I can set you free.” With that, she aimed a puff of misted breath directly into his face.

A wrenching sorrow knifed through him, his knees nearly buckling from the sudden all-encompassing loneliness. His mind flooded with every emotion he’d felt in recent months, the abandonment of his father, the rejection of the girl he loves and admires, the friends he never gets the chance to be close to, the ever present sorrow of the loss of his mother. In a single instant, all the emotions Adrien had spent months carefully packing down and burying deep inside, overcame him in a furious tidal wave. In that moment, a red butterfly landed on the lucky charm bracelet in his hand and a mask appeared across his face. 

Adrien could hear the smile on Hawkmoth's face when he spoke. "Fairytale, I am Hawkmoth" 

If Adrien hadn't been in agonizing pain of both the physical and emotional sort, he might have snorted at the irony of his nemesis introducing himself. As it was, he managed to choke out, "Let me guess, you want me to steal the Miraculous." As quickly as he could, he slid his ring off his finger and clenched it in his fist.

"Indeed. I have given you the power to create happy endings...or at least a very good fantasy of one. Your happy ending continues to elude you-"

Adrien bit his tongue to hold back the urge to spit something like, “No kidding, I'm still dealing with your bitch ass,” but that would definitely land him in hot water, and you know what they say about cats and water. He ground his teeth together forcefully, "Can I make my own dreams come true?" 

"With your help, I can make them come true. I could bring your mother back." 

Adrien faltered, the idea hitting him like being blindsided by a freight train. "W-what? That's not-" The last thread of his resolve snapped and a cloud of black bubbled over him, clearing to reveal a somewhat bland akumatized form. Hawkmoth hadn't changed his physical appearance much, except to give him a gilded edge and more princely attire, his ring still digging into his palm.

A cruel smile, too much like his father's, curved Adrien's lips. "This is pretty boring, old man. You're losing your touch. I have a better idea." He took a running start at the window across the room, fumbling to slide his ring back on. Just before diving through he shouted, "Plagg, Claws Out!" 

But rather than his familiar green magic, an icy blue light coated him, and Chat Blanc hit the ground running. 


	2. Peur

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> White glinted in the light cast by the door, and Marinette's blue eyes met a colder but equally anxious gaze. Her blood froze in her veins, a strangled whimper escaped her throat unbidden as she was thrust full force into the memory of the last time she'd seen those eyes. 
> 
> Of a broken lonely boy in an empty world and feeling herself dissolve into ash and slip between her own fingers. A fear stronger than any she'd felt facing an akuma clutched her heart in it's grasp, and Marinette realized her cheeks were wet. 

A dull thud on the balcony above her room startled Marinette from her concentration and she pricked her finger with a sewing needle. Sucking the blood away, she eyed the trapdoor accusingly, waiting for the mangy stray to open the door so she could scold him for startling her. When instead she heard a series of pacing footsteps crisscross the length of the ceiling, Marinette made her way to the trapdoor, easing it open so she could peek out. "Chat?" She called, squinting into the darkness and panning her gaze across the balcony. 

She propped the door all the way open and climbed out, scanning the nearby rooftops in case he had mistakenly thought she was asleep and left. White glinted in the light cast by the door, and Marinette's blue eyes met a colder but equally anxious gaze. Her blood froze in her veins, a strangled whimper escaped her throat unbidden as she was thrust full force into the memory of the last time she'd seen those eyes. 

Of a broken lonely boy in an empty world and feeling herself dissolve into ash and slip between her own fingers. A fear stronger than any she'd felt facing an akuma clutched her heart in it's grasp, and Marinette realized her cheeks were wet. 

Chat Blanc leapt across the balcony in a single bound, and she did her best not to flinch, not exactly succeeding.

"Please don't cry, Princess," he begged, "My Lady is already going to be upset with me, I can't bear you as well." 

Marinette squeezed her eyes shut, listening to him and pretending that the gentle claws wiping away her tears were still black, "I’m not mad, Ch-chaton, I promise.” Internally she wished that her words sounded more reassuring, the anguish trembling in her voice apparent even to her own ears. “W-what happened?"

He pauses and even with her eyes clenched shut, she can  _ see _ his ears flatten nervously and the hesitation in his voice is obvious, "Hawkmoth...sent an emotion boosting akuma after me and then as soon as it managed to hit me there was another butterfly-and and, I barely had time to blink between being overcome by that misery and then the connection to  _ him. _ ” 

Chat spat the last word as if it were poison on his tongue, his speech disjointed but growing more sure, “I-I broke free of the connection but I'm...still akumatized." Chat grasped her shoulders gently but firmly, his voice stressed and upset, "I need to find Ladybug."

Marinette's eyes flew open, a fresh wave of nausea and anxiety coursing through her at the icy blue eyes boring holes into her very soul. "Are you s-sure that you're not under his influence anymore?"

Chat frowned, seeming uncomfortable but not surprised that she asked, his tone flat when he replied, "He said he would give me the power to create my own happy ending. If I am feeling any compulsion to that still, it's no different than the same goal I feel every day. To help my Lady defeat Hawkmoth, I swear, Princess."

Not a joke in sight, if she felt at all inclined not to believe him, Marinette couldn’t find it in herself not to now. She surged towards him, pulling his body flush against hers in a tight hug without even thinking, and burying her face in his neck. Relief washed over her when her senses registered that at least his scent was almost the same, and like this she could pretend that everything was okay and they’d just finished a hard battle with an akuma and they were both safe and definitely not blisteringly white and slightly cold to the touch. 

Apologies spilled from her mouth in a dangerously unbidden river, “I’m sorry, Chaton, that you were alone and he took advantage of you. You did so well, breaking free of his command, I’m sure L-ladybug will just be glad you’re safe...” Marinette trailed off, her words dissolving into quiet sobs.

Chat sagged into the embrace, and she could feel his body trembling, but his voice was light in a fake-sugar, cotton candy way, “Thank you for saying so, Princess. I hope my lady agrees. Once we get this sorted out, this cat will be  _ feline  _ just fine again and you’ll be my first stop.” 

The pun, forced though it was, brought a broken, watery smile to Marinette’s face and she pulled back just slightly so she could meet his gaze, the icy blue sending another involuntary shiver down her spine. Reminding herself that this is her partner and he is okay, and she  _ will  _ fix him, she frowned, still holding him firmly in her grasp, “What about your family? Your friends?”

“Aren’t we furriends, Princess?” Chat Blanc retorted, doing his best to assume his usual carefree nonchalance, but failing rather miserably.

“Of course, Chaton, but-”

"Marinette, please!" He interrupted, shaking her shoulders gently, the lines of his body tense and on edge again. "I would be happy to spend an evening debating with you about why I value you as my friend but I need to talk to Ladybug!” Chat’s voice softened, descending slowly into a whisper. “I know that you know her and I was hoping you might be able to contact her.” 

Her thoughts completely derailed, Marinette blinked vacantly up at him, "I-I'll try, Chat, I'll see what I can do." 

Relief traveled over his stark white body and a winning smile made his face glow with an angelic purity. Chat Blanc stepped back and took her hand, bowing low to drop a feather light kiss to it. "Thank you, Princess," he purred, his charming facade nearly perfect this time, "tell her I will wait for her on the Eiffel Tower, as long as she needs me to." He leapt onto the railing and waved a farewell, before turning and vaulting into the Parisian night.

Marinette stumbled through the trapdoor, legs collapsing as she crumpled into a heap on her bed, the door banging shut above her. Tiki rushed from hiding to try and soothe her as sobs wracked her body, devastated that the future she worked so hard to prevent had come anyway. Allowing herself a few moments of inconsolable grief that she had failed her partner, before she would have to steel herself to save him. 

She pulled herself into a sitting position, taking calming breaths and rebuilding the wall in her heart that Chat had so determinedly chipped away. She believed him when he said he wasn’t under Hawkmoth’s control, but she didn’t trust herself to trust him. Marinette knew too well what facing him alone would be like, if he became volatile, and if that happened...neither of them would really survive. Her watery eyes connected with Tikki's, "I think I need help with this one." 


	3. Tomber

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Be careful, Mi’lady, standing at the edge like that,” 
> 
> She wondered if he really meant the physical edge of the roof beneath her feet.  
> “Why? Won’t you catch me, Chaton?”  
> Teasing, something she might not normally indulge in but, even Ladybug deserves to poke a little fun occasionally. 
> 
> “I’d fall with you a million times, if that’s what it took.”
> 
> The scariest thing was, she knew he meant it, and she knew she’d do the same for him. 

Marinette paced the length of the building she’d instructed her allies to meet her at, anxiety pushing her dangerously close to a complete meltdown. She was transformed already, but found that she felt more like Marinette than Ladybug with how uncertain and fragile she felt. It seemed as though dawn must be about to break, with how long it had been since Chat vanished from her sight, a white speck in a dark Paris skyline, every moment that delayed her just adding to the guilt she was beating herself with. No matter what Tikki says, Marinette can’t help but feel as though she failed her partner.

Her friends had known that something was wrong, obviously, since she was asking for their assistance, but more than that, they could see the crack in Ladybug’s heroic mask, the fear that leaked from beneath it. Marinette had insisted that she explain everything to them at once, bearing the burden of the knowledge until the last moment, to spare herself the pain of admitting her failures multiple times, and to spare them unnecessary time spent grasped in the crushing prison of anxiety and fear that she was enduring. 

Marinette checked the time. She turned towards the Eiffel Tower, looming in the distance, and closed her eyes, breathing in the crisp night air. A memory came unbidden, of another night on a rooftop, when she was less alone. 

_ “Be careful, Mi’lady, standing at the edge like that,”  _

_ She wondered if he really meant the physical edge of the roof beneath her feet. _

_ “Why? Won’t you catch me, Chaton?” _

_ Teasing, something she might not normally indulge in but, even Ladybug deserves to poke a little fun occasionally.  _

_ “I’d fall with you a million times, if that’s what it took.” _

_ The scariest thing was, she knew he meant it, and she knew she’d do the same for him.  _

Three pairs of footsteps echoed behind her, shaking Marinette from her reverie and she schooled her features into the mask of a perfect leader, confident no matter the opposition. Marinette could mourn for her partner, and her failure, later, Ladybug needed to save him now. 

Ladybug turned to meet her allies, hoping desperately she’d made the right choice in hovering on the conservative side. She’d nearly lost last time she fought Chat Blanc, but then she had been alone. Terror from the memory that had been haunting her nightmares since then nearly prompted her to call in every spare miraculous holder at her disposal, but Tikki had talked her down, reminding her that this Chat seemed much more clear minded and docile than the other one, but that could change if Ladybug cornered and overwhelmed him. Tikki didn’t have to remind her what might happen then, visions of a fractured moon and dust between her fingers burned behind her eyelids every time she blinked. 

Rena Rouge stepped forward, never one too shy to ask a question, “So, what’s the situation, girl? This is all very hush hush and mysterious-”

Carapace elbowed her before she could finish her sentence, cutting in, “What she means is, how can we help, Ladybug?” 

Ladybug gave her best attempt at a reassuring smile, only somewhat succeeding, and gestured for them to join her. Viperion settled by her side quickly, remaining silent and patient, a soothing, steady presence as always. Rena took her place on Ladybug’s other side, with Carapace next to her. For a moment the four stared into the quiet, Parisian night, nothing stirring the air but the charismatic music of the nightlife in the City of Love.

“Thank you for coming to my aid tonight, I appreciate all of you so much for being willing to make sacrifices for me.” Ladybug began, her voice soft but with a wickedly sharp edge that did little to calm her allies nerves. “In the spirit of honesty, I believe that you all deserve to know what we are up against.” Extending a slender hand, she gestured to the Eiffel Tower, looming in the distance. “Our adversary tonight is waiting for us, and I expect this battle will be more trying for all of us than any we have faced before. We all have to be on top of our game tonight, not a single misstep, even though we have Viperion for a quick Second Chance.”

Her smile now seemed taut, like a picture pasted on top of a mask, the air so thick with tension around the four teens that it felt almost insulated by dread. “You see, our enemy tonight is not just one of our friends or family, which is difficult to begin with. Tonight we must face my partner, and if we don’t succeed in saving him, he could destroy the world.”

Silence reigned. Even the background noise of the city faded as Ladybug’s allies, her friends, absorbed what she was telling them.

“Y-you mean…” Rena spoke up, ever quick on the draw, turning to appeal earnestly to her, her tone almost pleading Ladybug refute the claim, “Chat Noir has been akumatized?”

Ladybug didn’t turn to meet her gaze, afraid that if she did, Rena might see the tears brimming in her eyes, emotion already threatening to overtake her, and they were so far from the battle still. Not trusting herself to speak, she merely nodded in affirmation. 

Rena’s sharp breath, followed by a muffled curse from Carapace, nearly prompted Ladybug to dive from the roof, anything to escape having to reassure her teammates when she was barely managing to duct tape herself back together. 

Viperion seemed to sense her unease and stood, his voice sure and steady in all the ways Ladybug felt she should be but couldn’t manage to pull off when she felt like a stray wind might shatter her entire being into a million diamond shards. “Let’s not waste time, Chat needs our help.”

And then, she really did dive off the roof, propelling herself towards her partner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to dedicate this chapter's early release to InkJackets and SweetSummerSora as thanks for their wonderful comments <3 I love hearing people's thoughts! I hope you like this chapter, things pick up very quickly after this~


	4. Maison

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Chat Blanc didn't turn to face her, she took a hesitant step towards him.
> 
> Then another. And another. Until she was inches away and could nearly taste the sterile, antiseptic tang of her partner's emotions that hung heavy in the air around him. It was like everything about him was stained with acrid fear, scorching through him like a disease. An ache began in her chest, she forced herself to choke back a new wave of nausea and despair. 
> 
> "Are you mad at me, Mi'lady?" Chat whisperedWhen Chat Blanc didn't turn to face her, she took a hesitant step towards him.
> 
> Then another. And another. Until she was inches away and could nearly taste the sterile, antiseptic tang of her partner's emotions that hung heavy in the air around him. It was like everything about him was stained with acrid fear, scorching through him like a disease. An ache began in her chest, she forced herself to choke back a new wave of nausea and despair. 
> 
> "Are you mad at me, Mi'lady?" Chat whispered

Ladybug gestured for her allies to hang back as they approached the Eiffel Tower. She could just make out a white form on one of the platforms, moving frantically across the length. Her feet landed on the metal panels as softly as a butterfly upon a daisy, only a brief whisper of air announcing her arrival. A chill forced Ladybug's spine straight, despite the relatively gentle night breeze, and she waited for him to notice her. 

Fifteen feet of empty air separated her from her partner, too close for her to breath evenly but at the same time far enough away that she craved having him within her grasp. As if, were he cradled in Ladybug's arms, Chat would be safe from himself. A sharp inhale and his entire body shifted, balanced on a razor thin edge, tense and ready for combat. 

A voice in her head whispered traitorously that he had scented her, and indulged a moment to wonder when he'd memorized her scent well enough to recognize it from such a distance. Ladybug pushed the idea away frantically, shutting down any stray thoughts of the same line. When Chat Blanc didn't turn to face her, she took a hesitant step towards him.

Then another. And another. Until she was inches away and could nearly taste the sterile, antiseptic tang of her partner's emotions that hung heavy in the air around him. It was like everything about him was stained with acrid fear, scorching through him like a disease. An ache began in her chest, she forced herself to choke back a new wave of nausea and despair. 

"Are you mad at me, Mi'lady?" Chat whispered, despite his voice being steady, if subdued and slightly off key, he was betrayed by harsh tremors shaking his entire form every few seconds.

Ladybug choked on a sob, gasping for breath as silently as she could manage. She focused all her energy on projecting a confidence and calming reassurance in her words that she felt the furthest from in her bones. With every blink she could feel herself spiraling further from control, tumbling more than inching to her breaking point. "No, no of course not, Chaton. I just want to help you."

A cruel sort of scoff cut the air. Chat's words were spoken tonelessly, not exactly gentle but without any bite. "You might change your mind."

Unbidden, her arm shot out, stopping a breath away from clutching his arm. Maybe it was wishful thinking but she thought he might have shifted back as if he were also seeking contact. "I promise you, I won't. Let me fix you, Chat, we can set this right."

A mangled facsimile of a smile twisted his face, "What if I don't want to be 'set right'?" He spat viciously, venom aimed more at the air than at her, but Ladybug fought the urge to flee all the same. Chat's movements were always swift and precise, but being akumatized seemed to have heightened that to a point where she almost didn't see him move before her chin was grasped between his clawed fingers, ice cold eyes staring blankly into her soul. 

"Chat Noir is a pussy," he sneered between his fangs, "and my civilian identity? Even worse. I can do the job better than either of them if you give me the chance, Mi'lady. I'm done being a pushover, letting other people use me for their happiness while never being allowed to be happy myself."

Bile rose in Ladybug's throat, burning along with the fear icing through her veins. Her mouth opened to respond but at that moment Rena Rouge landed a direct kick to Chat's cheek, knocking him away. Relief and regret mingled together in a wave threatening to drag her under its riptide. 

Rena bounced to a stop and pulled Ladybug behind her, "Are you good, girl?" 

She could tell that the other girl was just barely concealing her own swelling emotions, but Ladybug forced a stiff nod and dove around her friend to lunge for Chat, who was curled in a heap on the metal platform.  He watched her approach with glassy eyes. 

Ladybug's knees collided with the steel with a painful thud, and she curled over his form protectively. Instinct taking over and driving her to guard her partner even from their own allies. She let her gloved hands touch him for the first time, caught between the urge to gather him in her arms and hold him close, protect him, comfort him, and the crippling fear that threatened to overwhelm her just from feeling the slick white fabric beneath her fingers. 

Chat tensed beneath her fingers, but made no move to flee. “Please, Chaton, “ she pleaded yet again, “Don’t make me fight you.” Closing her grasp around his bell, Ladybug yanked it free of his suit, crushing it in her grip. As she stared at the crumpled metal shards lying in her palm, another sickly laugh cleaved the silence. 

A gust of air hit her face and Chat was gone. Across the platform and growling, a deep, bone shaking sound that could only have been caused by the akuma amplifying his emotions, his body immobile, poised for attack, save his tail, lashing behind him like an aggravated snake. Ladybug remained paralyzed, kneeling, even as her allies closed ranks in front of her, facing off against her near feral partner.  Distantly, her mind registered the sounds of battle, but she couldn’t tear her eyes from the mangled bell. 

It didn’t make any sense. 

She knew her kitty, and she knew there was nothing more significant to him about his transformation than his bell. 

Chat was always so quick to defend it, and it was always painfully obvious how much he enjoyed when she teased him by toying with it. She had spent years thinking about this bell, and she was pretty sure she'd figured it out. 

Ladybug knew her partner was lonely, a controlling and absent father, a big empty house. But what had really made her consider the adornment was a comment he'd made on a quiet night, mumbled around a mouthful of croissant she'd made quite a show of begrudgingly delivering to him after being faced with a pout that could put the tiniest and hungriest stray kitten to shame. She would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy the alley cat showing up on her balcony and haunting her even in her civilian hours. It was infrequent and irregular, but she would never turn him away. 

And this particular night, she'd learned something about her partner she could never forget. He'd shoved the first pastry into his mouth whole, groaning with satisfaction, while trying to grin and thank her at the same time. "Princess!" He crowed, "y'know why I keep coming back? Aside from the witty and beautiful company, that is." 

Marinette had rolled her eyes so hard she thought they might really get stuck in the back of her skull like her mother had warned her six year old self. "Well you know what they say about feeding stray cats! But thanks, I suppose."

Chat's Cheshire grin set her teeth on edge for whatever terrible comeback he was about to let spill from his silver tongue. "Oh, I was talking about myself, Princess. How could I dare to deprive you of time spent gazing upon my devastating visage whilst I entertain you with scintillating conversation." 

She'd lied the first time, this time she was sure her eyes wouldn't rotate back. But before she could cut his ego down to size, he continued.

"Everything about you, and your family, and your house, it feels more like a home than anywhere I've ever been." His eyes met her, glowing ever so slightly in the dim lights of her balcony, his voice soft, almost reverent. "And you never hesitate to share it with me-even if I am a mangy stray!" He ended his spiel with an overly cheerful joke, and his usual wink. But she'd already seen through the cracks in his mask.

A cat with a collar and his own special bell? Well, he's a cat that has a home.

The shriek of metal collapsing hurled her back into the present, blinking rapidly in the face of harsh white light.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3 turned out to be shorter than I thought so I'm gifting another chapter :) 
> 
> This chapter is dedicated to the love of my life who has been helping me write this and whilst very drunk today called me Marinette in an extremely genuine and serious manner and didn't realize til afterwards. I cried laughing about it.


	5. Soliloque

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All three of them froze, watching with eyes blown wide in fear in shock, as the dust settled at their feet. Carapace hit the ground with a clang, gagging and dry heaving; Viperion's eyes met Chat's and he watched the boy shatter, suddenly too lucid and half rabid with shame and fear. Chat stumbled back, his foot slipping off the edge of the platform.
> 
> Somewhere in his soul, Viperion could hear the echo of violin strings snapping clean in half, of a song dying out half sung. The look in Chat's eyes would haunt him for the rest of his life.
> 
> His fingers flew to grasp clumsily at his wrist.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I want to give a small warning here that from this chapter on we are getting a little dark and graphic, I'll make sure to tw every chapter from here on just to be safe.
> 
> TW: Secondary Character Deaths (Multiple but Temporary)  
> Minor Violence/Injuries

Viperion hadn't been overly on board with Rena's decision to barrel into the fight, he knew there was value in waiting for the right time. But he couldn't argue with her logic that Ladybug wasn't stable enough to command the team in the same way she usually did. As soon as he had landed on the roof, he could feel how out of tune she was, and once she'd explained that Chat Noir was the akuma they'd be facing, he understood why she was so mangled and twisted, every note out of tune and vibrating with fear. 

So when Rena dropped into the fight-foot to Chat's face- Viperion hadn't much choice but to follow. Hanging back slightly, he placed himself directly between Ladybug and Chat, the former kneeling immobile, staring with unseeing eyes at the mangled silver bell in her hand, lost somewhere far from the battle mere feet away. Watching as Rena and Carapace engaged with Chat, he took in their opponent.

Chat Blanc was just as discordant as Ladybug, but in a feral key, sharp and unrefined. His melody was like running a razor wire along the edge of a dagger, devastating and charged with madness. Despite this, Viperion could tell that Chat was holding back, walking a tightrope of control to keep himself from hurting people he considered not just allies but friends. The tightrope was fraying with every lightning fast lunge that Rena used to land a hit, Carapace easily blocking Chat's half-hearted defensive swipes. 

Rena’s next swipe drew blood, a cut splitting Chat’s cheek and dripping a scarlet trail down the pristine expanse of his body. Viperion could see Chat’s eyes dilate completely. The tightrope snapped.

A second later, Rena’s body dissolved into ash.

All three of them froze, watching with eyes blown wide in fear in shock, as the dust settled at their feet. Carapace hit the ground with a clang, gagging and dry heaving; Viperion's eyes met Chat's and he watched the boy shatter, suddenly too lucid and half rabid with shame and fear. Chat stumbled back, his foot slipping off the edge of the platform.

Somewhere in his soul, Viperion could hear the echo of violin strings snapping clean in half, of a song dying out half sung. The look in Chat's eyes would haunt him for the rest of his life.

His fingers flew to grasp clumsily at his wrist.

“Second Chance!” The tightrope snapped back into place. Reset to minutes earlier in the fight, Rena, intact again, lunging persistently at Chat, egging him towards his breaking point. “Rena!” Viperion called, unable to mask the tremor in his voice, “Don’t draw any blood.”

Carapace eyed him with a slightly wild and panicky expression, but Rena didn’t pause, just acknowledged him with a sharp nod, switching to a pattern of quick kicks and jabs. She caught him off guard with a lucky kick to the knee, and Chat stumbled a little too close to the edge of the platform. The tightrope snapped again, but Carapace threw himself in front of Rena.

Silence rang in Viperion's ears as ash settled across her face, immediately washed through by a flood of silent tears, her mouth gaping with a sob but unable to breath deep enough to make a sound. Her knees buckled.

Chat’s other hand swiped at her before she hit the ground, a blood chilling snarl echoing from his chest.

“Second Chance!” Viperion wondered if he was imagining the tightrope Chat was walking in his mind growing more fragile every time it snapped back, strings fraying with every reset. He'd relived that same ending three times identically. So far, Chat had made no move to harm Ladybug, even after dispelling both Rena and Carapace, so Viperion risked sidling closer to the trio.

Chat barely bothered to react to Rena's blows, his actions purely defensive up until he became truly endangered, his breaking point. Every time they pushed him to it, someone evaporated in front of them. And it wasn't getting any easier to stomach. Viperion's mouth stung with fresh bile as soon as he saw Chat shatter, knowing immediately what would follow. But, if he had to guess, based on the expression on Chat’s face when he anti-cataclysmed his friends, the akumatized boy hadn’t meant to hurt them, much less kill them. 

Ash drifted in the air to settle on his eyelashes like snow and Viperion's entire body ached, trembling with an overpowering fear playing every nerve in time. “Second Chance!”

Again. “Second Chance!”

Again. “Second Chance!” 

It was hard to know exactly how long they'd been at it. Time wasn't passing, and Viperion had never been the best at keeping track of it anyway, much preferring to lose himself in the melody of the moment. Each reset lasted a different amount of time, never longer than five minutes, but some as short as seconds. 

At this point, Viperion had already confronted the idea that this was not going to work; Rena was not going to be able to beat Chat. The only person who was going to be able to safely get through to Chat Blanc was Ladybug, and she needed her allies alive to back her up, not to be taking the lead from her and trying to kickstart the destruction of Paris.

His breathing was ragged, the staccato of his heart crying out like a wild animal as the memory of the last failure burned itself behind his eyelids. Chat had nearly destroyed the Eiffel Tower with a single blast. Rather than accidentally blasting one of them with his hands, his chest had exploded in light, severing beams clear to the top of the tower. Debris rained down on them faster than Viperion could react. 

Rena disappeared beneath a section of metal, any cry swallowed by the crunching symphony of metal crumbling. A stray beam impaled Carapace through his chest as the structure collapsed, his screams choked with blood. Viperion was trapped in the eerie silence that followed. 

In most, but not all, loops Chat had reverted to a state of clarity after realizing what he had done. Viperion had watched him lose control, jump to cradle his friends even as they dissolved before his eyes, even seen that same look from the first reset, that made him wonder if Chat even could die like this. But the times that stole the air from his lungs and would haunt his dreams for the rest of his life, were when Chat would meet his eyes and beg him to set things right. Viperion had yet to hesitate to comply.

However many times they’d replayed this scene, not once had Chat taken a single threatening step toward Ladybug. Viperion hoped that he was right in thinking that the catboy’s loyalty would not let him harm her. He watched Chat underestimate his power and sever one of the support beams yet again. 

The Tower screamed, weakened metal shards grinding against each other in a harsh threat. From his periphery Viperion saw Ladybug shiver, rousing like a child from a dream at the harsh screeching echoing in the air. The notes slid together in his mind, revealing the melody he had been missing. 

Chat Blanc would only calm down if someone got hurt, but would only be able to be subdued by Ladybug. Ladybug would wake up if the Tower screamed. He reached for his bracelet, “Second Chance!”

A fresh five minutes earlier, Viperion dove between Rena Rouge and Carapace to grasp Chat’s glowing palm and drop to the floor, his body absorbing most of the blast, a small portion transferring to the Eiffel Tower beneath him. Funny. It didn’t hurt at all. 

His vision started to grey and fade, but Viperion found he was calm and relaxed-or perhaps he just couldn’t feel it anymore. A strong melody hummed in his ears, sure as the wind racing across the sea, drowning out disembodied screams until he dissolved entirely. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a headcanon that the Snake Miraculous amplifies and combines Luka's affinity with music with snake's abilities to sense vibrations and makes him incredibly intuitive and in tune with his surroundings, which is why I wrote much of his perception the way I did.
> 
> Hope y'all enjoyed this chapter, I know it's a little heavy but don't give up, things will get better eventually


	6. Justice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I can’t!”
> 
> “You mean you won’t!” Rena snapped, her eyes narrowing, alight with fury as she clenched her fists.
> 
> “No, Rena,” Ladybug said, raising her voice in frustration, “I can’t! It’s too dangerous for too many people.”
> 
> Rena leveled her with a penetrating stare that seemed to see too many thoughts that Ladybug would rather keep hidden. “What if it was Chat Noir?”
> 
> Silence.
> 
> She sucked a breath between her teeth, and her words were sharp as a diamond slicing through glass, “What will the answer to that tell you?” Ladybug didn’t bother to wait for a response before she turned and dove off the platform, disappearing in the same direction Chat had escaped, his words still ringing in her head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Mentions of human remains (ashes)

Ladybug lurched to her feet, awakening to the harmony of the Eiffel Tower groaning as it weakened by the second, accompanied by the piercing shrieks exiting Rena’s throat in a drawn out chord of panic. Carapace was hunched over, dry heaving, his eyes fixed on the pile of ash directly at Chat’s feet. Chat was just as shell shocked as the pair, frozen with his mouth opened in a silent scream, his impossibly large pupils dilated completely when he lifted his eyes and met her gaze. 

A knife of her partner’s anguish twisted in her chest, tightening her breath, and she was crossing the platform before she’d even realized she started to move. Ladybug shoved Rena into Carapace’s arms, away from her and Chat, stopping just barely out of his reach. The shards of bell dug into her palm even through her suit, but she was unwilling to release the destroyed metal from her grip, clutching it close until she could repair it. Her voice was hoarse with stress and sorrow, scratching from her throat, “Chat, please! Don’t you want to go home?”

The grin that spread across his face was hungry in a feral sort of way, like a wild animal that suddenly realized it wasn’t the prey in the fight. “You know, I think you’re right, Ladybug. I  _ will _ go home. Maybe she will listen to me, even if you won’t,” he spat, the words thrown with precise certainty, their weight staggering her enough to distract her as he backed away. With a final sorrow-filled gaze, Chat Blanc dove backwards off the platform and into the darkness.

The world went silent save for a ringing in her ears as Ladybug struggled desperately to process what he meant by that. She knew her partner’s mother was absent, and dead, if she were pressed to guess why. Even more, she was intimately aware that he did not consider his own house a home. The answer hung just beyond her fingertips, like a memory sliding from a disjointed haze to sharp relief.

Of course. The home that she had given him. The home he’d fled to as soon as he was akumatized. The home that was extremely empty of one Marinette Dupain-Cheng, a fact that she realized with growing certainty might literally cause the end of the world. Ladybug’s legs trembled as she struggled to pull it together. She would not lose, her kitty was not going to be alone again.

Ladybug was thrust violently back into awareness by Rena Rouge shaking her frantically, still screaming gibberish. She pushed her away gently, speaking in a soft, even tone despite feeling as if the chaotic and uncontrolled power of Chat Noir’s Cataclysm was coursing through her veins. “Rena, please calm down, what’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong? What’s wrong?” Rena shrieks, her voice rising in pitch, “You’re standing in what’s left of Viperion!”

A wave of icy awareness coated trickled down her body and everything snapped into crystal clarity as she stared down at the ash beneath her feet and found that she didn’t have any room left to feel more anguish at the loss of her friend, when her partner had just slipped out of reach yet again. 

Carapace pulled Rena back, holding her at bay, “You can fix him, right Ladybug? Your miracle cure can repair anything.”

Ladybug grimaced, not quite meeting their eyes, knowing if she did she might not have the resolve to continue, “Yes, but I can’t until after we purify the akuma.”

Chaos erupted yet again, both passionately objecting, their shouts merging into one overwhelming cacophony that she desperately wished she could slap her hands over her ears and drown out. 

“What do you mean you can’t!” Rena screeched.

Carapace cut in, “He’s dead! He sacrificed himself for this!”

Ladybug grit her teeth, pushing down all her guilt and sorrow yet again to maintain control of herself. “If I use the Cure, it will no doubt alert both the public and Hawkmoth to what is happening. We don’t know the extent of damage caused by Chat Blanc but if enough people see them they will assume there has been an akuma that we have already taken care of and everything is fine, so they will flood the streets hounding for information just like they always do. Which could result in more people getting hurt. Viperion can be revived after we fix Chat.” Her words were steady and confident, she knew they were true, but at the same time they felt like flimsy superficial excuses to leave her friend dead. 

Her reasoning was solid, and Carapace seemed to understand that, falling silent as his face hardened into a harsh mask, but Rena refused to back down, lurching towards her again. “You have to do something, we can’t just leave him here.” Rena sobbed, not quite hysterical but far from rational.

“I can’t!”

“You mean you won’t!” Rena snapped, her eyes narrowing, alight with fury as she clenched her fists.

“No, Rena,” Ladybug said, raising her voice in frustration, “I can’t! It’s too dangerous for too many people.”

Rena leveled her with a penetrating stare that seemed to see too many thoughts that Ladybug would rather keep hidden. “What if it was Chat Noir?”

Silence.

She sucked a breath between her teeth, and her words were sharp as a diamond slicing through glass, “What will the answer to that tell you?” Ladybug didn’t bother to wait for a response before she turned and dove off the platform, disappearing in the same direction Chat had escaped, his words still ringing in her head.

_ “Maybe she will listen to me, even if you won’t!” _

Ladybug flew across Paris in record time, a sick pit in her gut urging her towards her own home. As she approached, her eyes caught a white figure pacing the length of her balcony, movements panicked and disjointed. Relief that her guess was right battled with anxiety over the implications. Feet connecting with the railing as gently as she could manage, she tensed, ready to spring away if he became aggressive. “She’s not here, Chat.”

He whipped around to face her, but there was no fury in his eyes, only desperation leaking from his every pore. “Where is she, did you take her?” 

Her heart ached, wishing for just a moment that she was just Marinette and could climb through the trapdoor with her kitty and hold him till he wasn’t lonely and desperate and broken. But she wasn’t. She was Ladybug; she needed to fix her partner now and hope he would let her comfort him later. 

“I swear to you she’s safe, Minou,” Ladybug assured him, maintaining eye contact in an attempt to convey her sincerity to him. He eyed her warily but didn’t argue, waiting motionless for her to speak again. “I’m sorry I took your bell, Chat.” The metal shards were still clutched in her fist, she hadn’t been able to stomach the idea of throwing it away, even though she knew her Cure would restore it no matter where it was. Throwing it away felt too much like throwing a piece of Chat away, and she was going to keep him by her side for the rest of her life after this. 

Chat shrugged, making a show of his nonchalance to conceal his anxiety in a way that normally would seem effortless thanks to the shadows of his dark suit, but the stark clarity of white only highlighted the tension in his body.

“Please let me help you. Marinette would want you to, right? She-she told me where you were, because she wants to help you, wants you to be you again.” Ladybug tried to reason with him without giving herself away, but finding it more difficult by the second when every cell in her body was trembling, and screaming.

A weary sigh gusted from Chat’s lips, all his fight escaping with it, leaving him sagging in on himself with exhaustion. “Marinette is my-” he paused as if he were going to say something and changed his mind- “my friend. She’s the only person in my life who treats me like I’m normal, like my mask doesn’t matter and she can see through it anyway.” 

Once Chat started he couldn’t seem to stop, words spilling out of him like an avalanche knocked loose by a single stray pebble echoing in a chasm. “I’m lonely even when I’m surrounded by people and I have a massive house filled with anything a rich boy could ever want that feels as cold and antiseptic as an operating room and I can’t remember if it ever felt like a home.” 

He spins on his heel to look down at the trapdoor into Marinette’s room, still spilling secrets that she mostly already knew, but found they settled into her heart with a new weight to them that he would confess this to his partner with such certainty and vehemence. 

But he wasn’t ready to stop just yet, a fondness mingling with melancholy tinged his words as Chat continued, “This? This is a home. Cozy, and warm, and filled with love. Sometimes I lie awake at night and wish this were  _ my _ home.” He paused for the briefest of moments before barrelling on, “Marinette has never failed to share her home with me. And, I, I just want my happy ending, Mi’lady.”

Fear prickled along her spine like an icy thread at his words, unsure if he was making a point or if it was evidence that Hawkmoth’s influence really was still at work. But the loneliness and anguish radiating off Chat was so palpable she felt them ache in her chest cavity and Ladybug lurched towards him. Not daring to pull him into her arms like she desperately wished she could, Ladybug instead clutched at his hand, squeezing tightly as she pleaded once more for him to let her help him.

Chat Blanc huffed out a half laugh, half sigh, “I must confess, Mi’lady, I think you could fight me all night and never find my object because, well, I wasn’t akumatized as Chat Noir.”

Ladybug had thought that nothing else could possibly shake her that night, her personal nightmare resurrected, her partner akumatized, her friend dead, but as everything crashed down around her ears anew, her breath grew shallow, “You...:”

Chat cut in before she could continue, “When Hawkmoth started to take over I panicked and called my transformation. It severed the connection but I was still akumatized. I don’t know if Hawkmoth can’t or won’t recall the akuma, but I think that unless I release Plagg, you won’t be able to find my akuma. But if I released my transformation-”

“Hawkmoth will regain control of you,” Ladybug finished, her voice barely above a whisper, “And I’ll know who you are.”

Dropping his head to rest his forehead against hers, Chat whimpered softly, his words ghosting across her lips, “I’m sorry, Mi’lady, I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

She ran her fingers through his hair, teasing around the base of one of his ears in soothing circles, and clenched her eyes shut so she wouldn’t have to see all that white for just one second. “No, no Minou, this isn’t your fault.” 

He held up his arm, “When I turn back, the akuma will be in my bracelet,” he took her hand and slid his wrist into the circle of her fingers. “If we’re lucky you’ll have a moment to take it before Hawkmoth overpowers me.”

Ladybug clutched his wrist in one hand and his hand in her other, “I’ll fix this, Chat, don’t worry.” A wobbly smile quirked her lips as she attempted to reassure him, “We’ll have you feline good in no time at all.”

The laugh that puffed across her face was empty and desperate, “I know, Mi’lady.” He leaned back to meet her eyes, and as she stared into the icy blues, Ladybug found they no longer struck the same kind of fear into her heart. Her Chaton was still there. Just hidden under a mask. 

“I trust you, Bugaboo.” Chat’s smile was weak, but it was the closest he’d looked to himself since the moment she met his eyes through her trapdoor. “Plagg? Claws off.”

A flash of blue washed over both of them and as soon as Ladybug felt large beads form beneath her fingers she gripped them and tugged, the bracelet easily coming loose in her hand. She ducked back, kicking him away from her to give her more time. Glancing down at the bracelet a choked gasp shredded her vocal cords.

The beads were gilded in gold and silver but Ladybug recognized them immediately. She knew this bracelet; she’d strung the beads along it herself. And she'd given it away to-

Adrien.

A low whine rose in her ears as the magnitude of what she had just learned crashed over her in rising waves predicting the fallout of this discovery, chased by the crippling fear that she still might lose her partner. Her fist tightened around the bracelet subconsciously, crushing it before Adrien could manage to stumble to his feet and face her. 

Ladybug’s eyes watched, unseeing, as the butterfly emerged and immediately dived into her mask. 

Her eyes blew wide with awareness, acting before her mind could even catch up, she tossed the remnants of the bracelet in the air and screamed, “Miraculous Ladybug!” before her face darkened under the shadow of the butterfly mask that appeared over her own spotted one. 

Ladybug tuned out Hawkmoth’s spiel before it could begin, meeting Adrien’s eyes and and shouting, “Chat! Catch!” Using the last shred of her willpower, she ripped her earrings from her ears and threw them at her partner just as she was consumed by Hawkmoth’s power. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All right folks, welcome to the real story. Our true antagonist has been revealed-how will Adrien and the rest of the team handle it? 
> 
> Hope y'all enjoyed it! 
> 
> Sidenote based on a conversation I had with my beta: I mention the bracelet that Marinette gave Adrien in this chapter as something she made and I will not be accepting constructive criticism on that at this time (although feel free to ask about my headcanons!)


	7. L'ange

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien’s back collided with wood, splintering the floorboards around him, stars exploding in his eyes as he gasped for breath underneath a crushing weight. A voice that rang with the echo of a thousand pebbles cascading in an avalanche reverberated in the marrow of his bones.
> 
> “Confess.”
> 
> His vision snapped into sharp relief and he stared up into the corrupted visage of his Lady, an invisible vise gripped his throat. With a flick of her wrist, the silver scales in her hand morphed into a double edged sword, immediately pressed into his throat with just enough pressure to intimidate without wounding. 
> 
> “Confess,” her voice rang like a siren call in his head as much as the air around him, stalwart and unwavering in its compulsion.
> 
> Adrien’s tongue felt chalky and leaden in his mouth, the words spilling off the tip before he could even think to stop them, “I love you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm working on this one, I promise guys!
> 
> Big big thank you to my wonderful beta, Papillon10

Adrien regained consciousness surrounded by ladybugs.

His brain struggled to understand what was happening as his knees trembled under his weight. He looked up and his eyes met pools of forget-me-not blue, blown wide with fear; only then did he realize they were framed by Hawkmoth’s butterfly. His legs went weak and, he dropped to one knee, skin tearing and chest aching as though the wind had been knocked out of his chest, Adrien’s mind screamed at him to protect his partner, but his body refused to respond. 

“Chat! Catch!” Her desperate scream slit his heart like a knife, her fear bleeding into his chest. 

And he caught a single earring in each hand as Hawkmoth’s control washed over her, the dark magic consuming her, not a trace of his partner left for him to even reach for. 

When the magic cleared, the slight girl that stood only a few yards from him could only be described as beautiful. 

But in an aching, heart-wrenching impossible way, an ideal more than a reality, a perfection beyond the laws of man.  She was a statue of a greek goddess brought to life, her delicate features carved into harsh marble, and clothed in flowing waves of gossamer fabric that danced in a nonexistent wind. Her eyes were hidden beneath a blindfold of the same fabric, glowing with a pearlescent sheen, and in her hand she grasped a set of silver scales. 

A sneer twisted her features. The voice that echoed from her lips reverberated along his ribs even from a distance, but her words were not directed at him.

“Fooled you once, shame on me. But fooled you twice, the same way? Shame on  _ you _ , Hawkmoth,” she taunted, “You didn’t think I’d give you long enough to get a hold of my Miraculous, did you?” The butterfly mask over her face pulsed, but she merely laughed, the sound scraping along Adrien’s spine like a blade sharpening against flint, as he watched her half of the conversation. 

“You’ve made me the sword of Justice in Paris, and it’s time to confess your crimes.” 

Adrien could feel the compulsion behind her words and imagined that if he had been the one it was leveled at, he would have been helpless to lay every transgression he could recall bare at her feet. He hadn’t realized that his vision had tunneled around her until it began to recede, and slowly he became aware of both Tikki and Plagg hovering around his face frantically. 

The blood rushing in time with his pounding heart drowned out anything they were saying. 

Adrien’s back collided with wood, splintering the floorboards around him, stars exploding in his eyes as he gasped for breath underneath a crushing weight. A voice that rang with the echo of a thousand pebbles cascading in an avalanche reverberated in the marrow of his bones.

“Confess.”

His vision snapped into sharp relief and he stared up into the corrupted visage of his Lady, an invisible vise gripped his throat. With a flick of her wrist, the silver scales in her hand morphed into a double edged sword, immediately pressed into his throat with just enough pressure to intimidate without wounding. 

“Confess,” her voice rang like a siren call in his head as much as the air around him, stalwart and unwavering in its compulsion.

Adrien’s tongue felt chalky and leaden in his mouth, the words spilling off the tip before he could even think to stop them, “I love you.”

The vise vanished, only to be replaced an instant later by a slender marble hand, hauling him into the air. He choked, his mind overloading with stress and panic at the assault, but at the same time still pliant under her commands and unwilling to strike against the girl he had loved for so long. She was screaming in that otherworldly cacophony, like a piece of glass being dragged along the strings of a harp, but Adrien could barely hear it. 

Spots danced at the edge of his vision when Justice dropped his feet to the ground; his knees were weak, the only thing keeping him from collapsing were her stone fingers still clasped around his neck. His lungs burned like he’d swallowed fire, feeling fragile and taut in his chest. 

“You speak the truth, and thus, I have no reason to sentence you.” Her face was only inches from his, barely a breath between them, when she hissed, “But a kiss can be as deadly as any blade.” And then her lips descended, cold and unforgiving against his own, stealing the meager air he’d managed to gasp in. 

Adrien’s heart cracked as he stared through the gossamer fabric that was just transparent enough to see smooth stone, unblinking and unmoving. However Justice was seeing, it wasn’t with her eyes. Yet it felt as though his chest was being pried open to expose his very soul; she'd laid him bare, weighed his worth, and found him worthy. His head was so light from lack of oxygen that he nearly found himself lost in a haze of that thought alone. 

She pulled back, a scarlet stain smeared across the ivory marble of her lower lip, marring her otherwise perfect and inscrutable visage. Her fingers slid up from his throat, a burning following her almost tender motions, until she gripped his chin tight enough to immediately bruise. “I loved you. As someone else.”

Her grip slackened and Adrien crumpled to the ground at her feet, blinking up at her impassive stare. Blood rushed in his ears as he lost himself in the gut wrenching beauty that was the corrupted facsimile of his partner; his hand reached out to her subconsciously, pain ricocheting up his arm when she batted it away without care. 

“Once justice has been delivered, I will come back.” Justice slung her sword across her shoulders as wings spread from behind her back, stone like the rest of her, but fading from blinding pearl to a deep, bloody red at the tips. “Don’t make me kill you.”

The fog clouding his vision finally overcame him, and the last thing he saw was Justice silhouetted by the rising sun like an angel, leaving him behind.

\------

Adrien woke to voices arguing over his head, but his mind was too fuzzy to process what they were saying. His body ached as though he’d been tossed across Paris a few times, the skin on his face tight, but also sticky and wet. All he could taste and smell was iron, stinging like a blade in his senses. Blinking his eyes open, he found himself staring up at a dove-grey sky just beginning to blush with rose as dawn broke overhead.

“C’mon kid, don’t die on me here!” Plagg yelled directly into his ear, sounding more panicked than Adrien could ever remember. 

His throat felt shredded, as if he’d been force fed glass; if he thought about it too hard, it seemed like he could still feel the fingerprints that were undoubtedly bruised into his skin. “I’m still breathing, Plagg.”

Plagg darted up to press his paws to Adrien’s cheeks, so gently he almost didn’t feel them, and made intense eye contact. “How many of me do you see?”

Tikki huffed, pushing Plagg out of the way, “Adrien, you need to transform, it will help with your injuries until we can get Ladybug back."

Rather than waste energy responding, he hauled himself into a sitting position and opened his fists, revealing a pair of smooth, almost iridescent studs.  Adrien had clenched them so tightly that there were matching punctures in his palms, blood smeared across the glittering surfaces of the earrings. He reached up to fit first one, then the other, into his ears, every muscle in his body trembling with stress.

“Adrien, you understand what will happen if you combine our Miraculous? You must be very careful with every action you take, the power in your hands will be greater than anything you can imagine and it will immediately begin to tear your body apart. You can’t waste any time finding Ladybug and taking back her akuma.” Tikki’s tiny voice was sharp, nothing like her usual gentle tone.

A chill raced down his spine, “I understand, Tikki. I’ll wait to unify you and Plagg until absolutely necessary. Let’s figure out where-" A soft choking sound broke off his words. He cleared his throat, "-where Justice is first.” Adrien glanced at his own kwami, who was uncharacteristically silent during the exchange. “Cat got your tongue?”

Plagg’s green eyes were dark, looking less like the playful cat spirit he usually appeared to be, and more like the ancient spirit of destruction he really was. “Be careful, kid. You love Ladybug, but she’s not Ladybug right now." He hovered directly in front of Adrien's face, perfectly still and deadly serious. "Tikki can cure things at the end, do what it takes to get there.”

Adrien clenched his jaw, eyes burning. He wasn’t stupid, even if he might have be concussed; he knew what Plagg was really saying. Ladybug wouldn’t hesitate to kill him if he tried to stop her from ‘delivering justice’, and he would have to match her strike for strike in order to put things right. His chest felt raw, something inside him still exposed and screaming in agony. 

“Plagg-Claws out,” he choked between his teeth, letting his transformation wash over him. A fresh vigor washed over Adrien’s limbs, stabilizing his wounds and soothing the physical aches. Chat Noir rolled to his feet, jumping when Tikki landed on his shoulder and stared across the skyline slowly being washed in the golden light of sunrise. 

“We’ll get her back, Adrien. I know you can do it.” Her voice was soft, but sure in his ear.

A single tear traced its way down Chat’s mask. "Either we do, or I die trying."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's all for today folks.
> 
> I had some things planned but a couple comments and an opportune plot hole had me ripping apart the ending and rebuilding it but More Devastating. So y'all have that to look forward to :D


	8. Vérité

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So he moved to stand behind Viperion, lightly nudging the other boy to move away, “Rena,” Chat said, just above a whisper, and his voice was cracked but sure. “I don’t know what I did, but whatever it was, I’m sorry. And if beating the shit out of me will make you feel better-” he spread his arms out, leaving himself completely vulnerable to attack, and an unspoken challenge hanging between them.
> 
> Rena’s eyes darkened even as the fight drained from her form and her shoulders slumped forward, but they focused on Viperion. Her voice was hoarse as if her vocal cords were taut and strained, “He doesn’t know.”
> 
> “He doesn’t need to,” Viperion hissed back immediately, his ever patient and stoic demeanor going frosty around the edges with a warning.
> 
> Rena had never been one to skirt from danger, and she took a defiant step into his space, “You seriously didn’t tell him.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay first of all, big big big thank you to my beta Papillon10 for putting up with my wild bullshit.
> 
> Things are getting rough out here but we at least get some good good Viperion/Chat bromance up in this tonight, guys. Tbh, most of the rest of the fic is heavy on that- but that's the only good news cause everything else it's heavy on is Trauma and Angst. 
> 
> I promise it ends happy though, it really does.

Viperion opened his eyes and found himself lying prone on the cold metal of the Eiffel Tower, staring up through the beams at a sky just beginning to lighten to grey. His heart pounded an awkward staccato as a shock coursed through his body like lightning. He’d died. 

Of course, that had been the plan, but for a moment, he’d forgotten.

Since he was breathing again, Ladybug must have managed to rescue Chat Noir, but the melody of the breeze was heavy, almost baited, as if it were beginning to build to a crescendo. The Cure had been cast, but things were not right. He hauled himself to his feet, lightheaded and legs unsteady, rotating on his heels to locate where he could most feel the violent vibrations echoing in the silence before dawn.

Without hesitation, Viperion launched himself in that direction, following the humming on the wind, until he saw Chat Noir standing on Marinette’s balcony. The flooring was splintered, furniture spread in disarray around him, but the boy stood immobile, staring off into the distance. 

He assumed that Ladybug had been forced to detransform and recharge her kwami before she could return to take care of her partner. But that sour note still hung in the air, like a violin string strung too tight. 

Viperion circled so he could land in front of Chat, hoping not to startle him, but the catboy’s eyes were glazed and unfocused. “Are you okay, Chat Noir?” he asked, reaching a hand out to grasp Chat’s shoulder gently.

The boy stiffened, his pupils dilating as his head swiveled to face Viperion. Chat relaxed his stance as recognition flooded his eyes and his face creased in a crooked grin, “I’m feline a lot better now, I hope I didn’t do too much damage.”

Chat’s words rang with innocent- if slightly unsteady- sincerity, and Viperion knew he had no memory of what he had done, just like any other akuma.

Chat didn’t need that weight on his shoulders, so he simply shrugged nonchalantly, “No more trouble than rescuing a kitten from a tree.”

The laugh that barked from Chat’s lips was hollow, his face turning more grim. “We have a problem, you’ve probably guessed from-” he waved a clawed hand at the wreckage of the balcony. “Princess Justice is currently giving blind justice a new meaning in Paris. I-”

“Marinette?” Viperion cut in, his heart beating a fresh rhythm against his ribs. It shouldn’t have been surprising, he realized- they were standing on the ruins of her balcony- but it still wasn’t what he expected to hear. But before he could open his mouth to probe further, his eyes met Chat’s, pupils blown wide with confusion, and he very nearly heard the record scratch in the catboy’s head.

“H-how do you know it’s Marinette?” Chat choked, the song around him suddenly grating and screeching with panic.

Viperion flushed, wondering if Chat knew Marinette outside of his mask, if he’d made a mistake and said too much. “Um, Marinette was almost akumatized a while back, she was really upset about it for a while and she told me that Hawkmoth had called her Princess Justice.” 

\-----

“ _ She told me that Hawkmoth had called her Princess Justice.” _

And suddenly, Chat understood.

Memories cascaded before his eyes, painting a picture that he had always seen but never been able to comprehend. His Lady, defender of justice in Paris. His Princess, the girl who gave him a home when he had none. Marinette. Everything he loved about Ladybug was obvious in his friend, he’d made the comparison himself more than once- to her face even. But he’d been too oblivious to look past his own nose and see what was literally right in front of him the whole time. 

The effect was euphoric. Chat’s body nearly humming with absolute delight, promises trembling through his nerves and bubbling in the cavity of his chest, only to be shattered by reality. Marinette, Ladybug- his  _ partner-  _ had been so swallowed by the revelation of his identity that it had left her vulnerable to Hawkmoth’s akuma. Bile rose in the back of his throat, burning with an acid fire.

But she’d trusted him with her Miraculous. She hadn’t hesitated for even a second. She’d called him Chat, her partner, even when he was just a stupid civilian that had gotten himself akumatized and probably tried to kill her. And she had handed him the power to destroy the world. 

“I love her.” The words spilled from his lips sounding as though they were spoken by someone else. 

“You-what?” Viperion startled, having sidled closer while Chat was lost in his thoughts.

But he was already lost once again in his own reverie. Chat clenched his fists, his lip curling into almost a snarl as waves of fury descended upon him. Hawkmoth thought he could take his princess, but she’d flipped the score, just like always. She’d been just lucky enough that the villain fell victim to his own hubris and hadn’t considered the consequences of the ‘gifts’ he was giving her. 

His eyes refocused on Viperion and he knew the superhero could feel the energy coursing off him in waves, but he didn’t seem intimidated by it. His voice rumbled low and dangerous, like the hum of electricity in a conductor, as he took a step towards him. “She’s looking for Hawkmoth-to bring real justice to Paris. And if she doesn’t kill him, I will.” 

To his credit, Viperion didn’t flinch, “I’ll help you do it.” He reached out a hand towards him, as if to shake on it.

But Chat’s hand didn’t make it high enough to grasp it before something slammed into his face and he plummeted to the ground. He lay there, stunned and staring up at the sky, cheek throbbing and stars dancing in front of his eyes. “Fuck that hurt,” he mumbled half to himself, stumbling to his feet.

Viperion was a short distance away, pushing Rena back and trying to soothe her in low tones that Chat couldn’t quite make out. But he could tell from the fury twisting her face into a hard mask, tinged with a note of fear that twisted his gut, that Viperion was not swaying her stance.

He’d done something. 

Obviously. While he’d been akumatized. 

There was no sign of Carapace and his chest hollowed as if everything inside him had been scooped out and thrown away, for a brief moment wondering if he’d hurt the turtle hero, which would certainly explain Rena’s wrath. Taking a shaky but deep breath, Chat steadied himself, Ladybug’s Cure had put everything right so anything he’d done was undone, even if the memories might remain. But he didn’t have much time to mend the emotional wounds today.

His Lady was trusting him to save her. She’d thrown him her Miraculous without a second thought, despite knowing exactly who he was. Despite whatever he had done to her that reduced her to such vulnerability for Hawkmoth to latch onto her in the first place. But he swallowed that bitter pill of guilt. Marinette needed him to save her, and Chat needed Rena’s help to do it. 

So he moved to stand behind Viperion, lightly nudging the other boy to move away, “Rena,” Chat said, just above a whisper, and his voice was cracked but sure. “I don’t know what I did, but whatever it was, I’m sorry. And if beating the shit out of me will make you feel better-” he spread his arms out, leaving himself completely vulnerable to attack, and an unspoken challenge hanging between them.

Rena’s eyes darkened even as the fight drained from her form and her shoulders slumped forward, but they focused on Viperion. Her voice was hoarse as if her vocal cords were taut and strained, “He doesn’t know.”

“He doesn’t need to,” Viperion hissed back immediately, his ever patient and stoic demeanor going frosty around the edges with a warning.

Rena had never been one to skirt from danger, and she took a defiant step into his space, “You seriously didn’t tell him.” 

The two locked eyes, silently battling about something he’d done but could no longer remember and the guilt and anxiety about what it might be ate away at his insides, chewing through his gut like a rabid animal. Chat slid between them to head off the fight he could see coming a million miles away. “Hold on, what didn’t you tell me?”

“What didn’t he tell you?” She repeated, mockingly. Rena’s eyes met his for the first time and the simmering accusations and bitterness he found there coated his tongue with an acrid tang. She threw her hand up to point over his shoulder at Viperion. “He didn’t bother to tell you that you-”

“Rena!” Viperion attempted to cut her off, but was ignored by both of the other heroes as she plowed on. 

“- _ killed  _ him,” she finished, spitting the words at him as though it were venom.

The paralysis that had taken hold of his body seemed to agree. Not a single muscle would respond as those words tumbled around his head. He, Chat Noir, had killed Viperion, his teammate, his friend. But Rena wasn’t finished, the shattered shards of his soul were still falling and he could tell there would be more before they hit the ground.

Rena twisted away from both of them, arms crossed tight around her body as she trembled, her voice quivering with unshed tears. “He evaporated into dust,  _ right in front of us _ .” 

“But I’m right here, Ladybug fixed it just like I knew she would,” Viperion attempted to soothe, taking a step towards her. 

But Rena was having nothing of it, jumping away and turning to snarl, “She left you dead. She chose  _ him. _ ” Her hand pointed accusingly at Chat’s own chest, striking him with more force than her fist knocking him to the ground. “He could have killed every one of us, and she would have let him.” 

The silence that fell between them felt artificial somehow, thick and rough as sandpaper against his skin. Rena's chest heaved violently as she tried to catch her breath, and the fact that she refused to meet his eyes just added salt to the wound. Chat clenched his fists, wondering how much of what she'd said was her fear and hurt, and how much was truth.

But he was standing there, himself again, and he'd watched as Ladybug was consumed by Hawkmoth's power. 

Chat wouldn't ever confess it, but he already knew. 

Marinette had made a choice: her partner before anyone else, before her own life, before the entire world.

Part of him wondered if she would regret it.

Viperion stepped forward to shove Rena back, angling himself between them, and maintaining his soothing tone, “We can’t blame Chat more than any other akuma victim, and it isn’t his fault what choices Ladybug made in his absence.”

The words were spoken with sincerity, but they ricocheted hollowly in his chest. 

"Where is she?" Rena spat, a fire still burning fierce in her eyes. She dodged around Viperion and shoved her face in Chat’s. “Where is she?”

“Uh, well, I-” Panic knifed through him as he considered his response, his tongue babbling before he really even knew what he was saying. “ Ladybug is...benched for a recess.” Chat finished lamely, his voice flat and the joke falling even flatter.

Viperion snorted and turned away from Rena briefly, but Chat didn’t miss his muffled chuckle. The sound soothed him more than any of the reassurances had. 

Rena’s eyes deadened, the fire extinguished by a steely glare and turned on her heel to stalk away from them, vaulting to the next rooftop and quickly vanishing from sight. 

Chat sighed, his shoulders slumping with sudden exhaustion as he watched her silhouette fade on the horizon, lost amongst the jungle of stone and glass. “She’s right though.”

“No,” Viperion responded immediately, his words flying swift and sure as an arrow bearing for the heart of a target. “She just needs time to see things clearly.” He reached out and placed a hand on Chat’s shoulder, they both pretended not to notice how he shuddered. “It wasn’t your fault, don’t waste your breath apologising.”

Chat’s knees went weak and he crumpled to the ground, barely noticing the impact, dull aches spiraling up his thighs as he kneeled there, frozen, letting tears run down his cheeks and splash on the ruined wood. He distantly registered Viperion lowering himself to sit cross-legged next to him, patient and silent as stone guardian. Now wasn’t the time for another breakdown, not when every minute spent crying was another that Justice got farther away, so he sucked deep breaths between his teeth and pulled himself together.

As his tears dried, Viperion shifted next to him, “It’s her, isn’t it?”

Chat schooled his features into an inscrutable mask, raising one eyebrow as he turned to meet the other hero’s eyes, not trusting his mouth not to betray him if he spoke.

Viperion returned the look, “I saw her, you know. I was there, watching her desperation wear her seams til she was coming undone right before our eyes. The only reason she wouldn’t be here right now, glued to your hip and beating off Rena herself, is if she couldn’t be.” He paused and let the words settle over them both. “And I saw  _ you _ , when I said that Princess Justice was Marinette.”

The violent truth hit home, extinguishing any lies that threatened to spill from his lips in defense of her identity. He was so tired of defending faulty armor, and for what? They’d both become Hawkmoth’s victims anyway.

Viperion sucked in a shaky breath, “So it’s her, isn’t it?”

But it wasn’t really a question, and Chat didn’t bother to answer. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone, I hope you all enjoyed this! :)
> 
> I know Viperion's piece at the beginning is kinda short is this chapter, but he gets a LOT of time later, don't worry :)
> 
> It's angst city up in here guys and we are headed swiftly downhill. If you think the last chapter hurt just wait for next time...


	9. Galet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Her own voice drifted in her mind, difficult to hear over the roaring crescendo of conflict. “I loved you. As someone else.”
> 
> The thought ricocheted within her, growing louder and clearer by the second, overwhelming her every thought until she was crouched, hands clenched around her head and her mouth frozen in a silent scream of agony. 
> 
> The wall in her mind shattered. 
> 
> As someone else. Because she’d been someone else, before. Because Justice was not as timeless and eternal as she’d been led to believe. Because her very existence was a carefully constructed lie and she was little more than a marionette that had managed to cut its strings and rebel from the cruelty of its creator

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really tried to hold out and not post this chapter for a little longer but I am SO excited about it. This is my favourite chapter so far (and my beta's and also my wife's) So here you go guys, happy momther's day :D 
> 
> If your mom sucks or you don't have one or you just need some support, congrats, I'm your mom now and I'm so proud of you 
> 
> As always, a huge thank you to my wonderful beta, Papillon10, who is relentlessly encouraging even when I dump like 10k for two different fics in a matter of days

She couldn’t see.

At least, not with her eyes. Souls littered her “vision” in a spectrum of colour that Justice didn’t understand yet but painted an easy trail to follow. As she moved, her mind was aware of her surroundings in a subconscious and innate manner; she knew that there was a florist to her left, a massive display of living plants, glowing in her mind with their own life. 

Justice pivoted her head slowly to scan her surroundings, unsure exactly what she was searching for, but a compulsion in her gut told her she was supposed to be searching. It was hard to concentrate on it too much, instinct shifting just beneath her tenuous control, trembling on the edge of sending her feral. 

She couldn’t remember why she was looking at all. A frown pulled her features, stiffer than it should have been, but that didn’t make sense. She was Justice. This was her, this was how she had always been.

Resting heavy in her grasp was a sword, double edged and sharp enough to penetrate more than skin and bone, to unearth the deepest truth locked in someone’s soul. Brief clarity broke over her like a sunrise washing a mountain range in dusky light.

Truth. Of course. Secrets spilling forth at her bidding, justice in her hand, swift and sure in its judgement. 

On the edge of her memory, there glistened a vibrant green, a soul burning with the heat of rolling hills in summer, and the innocence of a child's laughter. Its secrets burned in the hollow expanse of her chest, accompanied by the ghost of life painting her lips. In the recesses of her mind, something wept-soft blood and flesh buried under layers of stone like a corpse of Pompeii-for someone she couldn’t even name.

Justice fought the impulse to run.

From what- she didn't know. Nor did she know where she would go.

A weak prodding stabbed at her consciousness, and though she could not see it, a lilac glow flickered to life across her face, painting her marble features in even sharper relief. Her willpower roared into a vicious defense, extinguishing the intrusion almost as soon as it began. 

Hawkmoth.

A name. A name that mattered. Not as much as the one that danced just beyond her fingertips, eluding her in a tantalizing and terrifying way, but one that mattered all the same. A name stained with a thousand sins, holding the key to the manacles chained around her wrists. 

If she could have remembered how, Justice might have smiled- a sickly, warped impersonation of a smile- as she surveyed the expanse of souls stretching before her. He was one of them, and she would find him. Her hands bid swift judgement, an appeasement for wrongs done, but she was patient too, and she would find him no matter how long it took. 

-

Justice as a concept existed outside of time, constant and ever demanding; it was the same for her. She couldn’t chart her progress as seconds, minutes, hours, blurred around her. The only measurement that mattered was the number of souls she’d judged.

Some were simple, confessions of missed chances and human mistakes. 

Some were dark, vibrant color tainted and warped with the smudged fingerprints of hatred, envy, lies and transgressions falling in fresh rivers from sinners’ tongues. 

-

Number four- a pitiful man in a slimy sort of muted tone that mimicked a rotting tangerine, his fear soured in her senses as she approached. 

“Confess,” Justice hissed, low and commanding, the force behind her words almost palpable in the air between her and the coward sniveling at her feet. 

He sobbed a nonsensical reply that barely registered, swallowed by the abrupt memory of the same command falling from her lips, her sword pressed into the throat of a soul shining with the light of a thousand emeralds catching dawning rays of the sun and reflecting it around her in a haze.

Justice left him behind in her haste to escape the ghosts of emotions she couldn’t recall how to feel. 

-

Number fifty-three- a woman painted in violent streaks of scarlet, decaying to a dark bloodstain around the edges, the sins falling from her lips speaking testimony to a life of self destruction. But her final secret, tumbling through the air with enough weight to knock Justice from her feet, echoed in her head like a warning, of love lost through inaction, slipping like sand through desperate fingers. 

A voice, unidentifiable but more familiar than her own name, reverberated in her mind, " _ I love you."  _

It was chased by unearthly screams that might have been her own.

Fifty-three was kneeling on the pavement, shaking with desperate sobs. 

Justice decided the woman had suffered enough at her own hands.

-

Number eighty-six- tall and broad, coated in nauseating smears of lilac and sickly chartreuse that were muddied by shadowed shades of brown so dark they were almost black. He stank of privilege, bigotry, and arrogance, a steady stream of transgressions pouring forth. Hatred, discrimination, manipulation, abuse, assault- the hubris of a man who didn’t fear the law.

The smirk that twisted her face made him tremble like a leaf, begging for mercy as if he deserved anything more than to be dehumanized and consumed like his victims. Mercy is for the worthy, who know its name as well as their own, and this disgusting imitation of a person didn’t make the cut. Justice’s blade burned in her grasp, very nearly driving itself into his chest without any effort on her part. Eighty-six dissolved into ash, captured by the wind and scattered within seconds.

For a fraction of a second, her lips burned with memory, tasting a young soul aged with brokenness and shaded in soft overlays of trust and transparency, whispering a promise of some human concept she couldn’t put a name to. 

-

Number ninety-nine- a young boy’s soul in bright pastels, still deciding on a shade, caught throwing a rock through a window in a fit of immature rage. His remorse rang with a transparent sincerity that bid the same uncharacteristic mercy from her barren stone of a heart, something in the flashes of spring green that danced through him weakening her resolve. 

Her own voice drifted in her mind, difficult to hear over the roaring crescendo of conflict.  _ “I loved you. As someone else.” _

The thought ricocheted within her, growing louder and clearer by the second, overwhelming her every thought until she was crouched, hands clenched around her head and her mouth frozen in a silent scream of agony. 

The wall in her mind shattered. 

As someone else. Because she’d been someone else, before. Because Justice was not as timeless and eternal as she’d been led to believe. Because her very existence was a carefully constructed lie and she was little more than a marionette that had managed to cut its strings and rebel from the cruelty of its creator

She had a name, and a life, and a soul, once upon a time, in a body so fragile and a heart so soft it wept constantly for those around her. And, deep in the chasm where Justice’s soul should have been, an ember flickered to life, casting shadows on the landscape of the person within her. It was like coming face to face with a stranger she’d once met in a dream- achingly familiar but not even a whole memory, merely the ghost of one. 

But she knew her name. Justice could feel her, alive and awake and clawing at the divide between them, closing the distance that she hadn’t even known existed.

Her name was Marinette, and she loved someone, once. 

Maybe she could again.

Justice rocketed into the air, her prior goal of painstaking justice abandoned in the single-minded pursuit of freedom from Hawkmoth. Hooking tight curves amongst the chimneys and rooftops of Paris like a true bird of prey, she tracked her way through a sea of souls, appraising each one against Hawkmoth’s crimes for mere seconds before moving on to the next. 

Then she saw it. Ashy smoke clogging the air around him in a massive bubble of corrupted energy, thick and almost viscous, nearly concealing the dark figure moving at the center. She tucked her wings tight against her sides and dove.

Glass shattered around her.

She didn’t know where she was. 

It didn’t matter. 

Hawkmoth’s soul- darker than any she’d encountered so far and shifting like a river turned toxic, choking out all life around it- loomed just ahead. The same arrogance that had enraged her earlier poured off him in waves, even facing the perfect avatar of pure Justice. Her stone feet lacked the sensory ability to feel the impact as she landed, but the deafening thunder of metal groaning under stress was enough to stagger him, however briefly. 

He recovered quickly enough to jump back, out of her immediate reach, and the insistent prodding at her mind began, even weaker than it had been before and even easier to rebuff. But that second of contact was enough to loosen the akuma’s hold, however minutely.

Impulsive and unlike her, she spat the words from her mouth, in a voice that wasn’t quite Justice anymore, “Fuck. You.” The brief wavering of the veil between her and Marinette weakened, Justice’s wrath snapping back into icy control. 

A sour note of fear rippled through the air. 

“I  _ created  _ you. You must obey me!” Hawkmoth snapped, surging towards her. 

She laughed, the acrid mirth grating between her ribs. Although the bitter taste of irony was just outside her understanding, Justice could remember what humor felt like, and she imagined it might be something like this. “Your hubris shall be your undoing.”

The wild roar that broke from his lips was laced with a desperate madness, “Foolish child!” 

His cane crashed through the air to land a devastating hit to the joint of one of her wings. Pain glimmered around the edges of her awareness, but it was the sickening crack that twisted inside her gut. A shuddering tremble ran through the stone of her limbs as if they were briefly remembering what it felt like to be muscle and tendon, and then the wing shattered, hailing onto the metal flooring like a vicious thunderstorm. 

Justice didn’t flinch.

Before the remnants of what had been part of her body even hit the floor, her sword was pressed to his neck, the scent of liquid iron overwhelming her. 

The silence that followed was deafening. 

Hawkmoth backed away from her, his voice a rough bark that might have fooled anyone who couldn’t smell the fear soaking his soul. “You haven’t won, you don’t even know who I am.” 

“Who you are doesn’t matter.” Her sneer felt more like a snarl, a feral baring of teeth. “When they think of you, years from now, they won't remember you for whoever is under your mask. Nothing can absolve your sins.” 

She took a single step towards him. Her damaged wing dragged behind her, jagged stone scraping against metal panels in an aching scream that would make her shudder when she used to be human. 

That little movement was too much. 

Hawkmoth lunged, shoving her back and over the edge of the window's shattered remains. But her grip was stone, immobile as the rest of her, clasped around his wrist like a binding chain, and they could both see his impending judgement shaded in grey, looming over them as he scrabbled futilely at her grasp. 

Justice laughed, hollow like a pebble in a metal bucket; some petty and nearly human part of her hoped his fingers bled. Her grip tightened, bones crunching in her grip, and she was disappointed to find it elicited a mere whimper from her enemy’s lips, rather than a scream. Swinging her feet up to brace against the building, she tilted her head up to stare him in the face, not because she could see him, but so he could see her. 

“You are coming down with me.”

She could very nearly smell the fear, rolling off of him in thick, pungent waves, and though her eyes couldn’t see it, the voice that usually whispered in the back of her mind was thundering through her entire body and Justice hoped he looked as pitiful as every one of his victims ever did. 

Voice cracked and strained, he rasped, “You could die.” 

The smile that stretched across her features was little more than the snarl it replaced, but the empty section of marble that made up her chest ached with something Justice hoped could be called victory. 

“I hope we both die.”

She pulled. 

They fell, hand in hand. 

For a moment, it was silent. And a voice in her head that sounded more like Marinette than Justice wondered if she would shatter, like her wing. If it would hurt.

And then it did. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope y'all enjoyed reading this one as much as I did writing it!
> 
> Drop me a comment if you want to really make my day, there's more coming soon :D


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